E-Mail

News about E-Mail, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Feb. 26, 2015

Personal Tech Q&A answers questions about Gmail; replacing laptop battery; Tip of the Week on purchasing gift cars to buy apps for smartphone or tablet. MORE

Feb. 19, 2015

The Upshot; survey of archived emails written by Jeb Bush during his tenure as governor of Florida reveals that he was surprisingly comfortable with relatively new technology, both in communicating policy and in chatting with journalists; insight offers hint of how he might approach news media during 2016 presidential campaign should he decide to run. MORE

Jan. 11, 2015

Gray Matter column by graduate student Kostadin Kushlev and Prof Elizabeth W Dunn describes their research into whether frequency of checking email influences one's stress levels, which appears in journal Computers in Human Behavior; notes that research suggests that resisting compulsion to check email is beneficial. MORE

Jan. 1, 2015

Personal Tech Q&A on how to block e-mail messages from certain senders in Mac OS X, and whether there is a general primer on using the Android operating system; Tip of the Week notes how to navigate settings in Facebook's news feed. MORE

Dec. 30, 2014

Gmail users in China say authorities seem to have blocked access to Google's email service through third-party email services, which many people had used after government blocked direct access to site in June; Google appears to have been singled out, as other Western companies say they have had no complaints from users. MORE

Dec. 25, 2014

Messages sent by Jeb Bush from both public and private email accounts during his time as governor of Florida are released through public records request; emails offer insight into his conservative agenda and approach to public office at time when he is considering 2016 presidential run. MORE

Dec. 25, 2014

Gadgetwise blog; adjusting email settings is first step in blocking web-bugs or pixel trackers that can monitor a user's activity, but other techniques are also advised. MORE

Dec. 13, 2014

Dec. 12, 2014

National Labor Relations Board overturns 2007 decision stopping employees from using their company's email for union organizing. MORE

Dec. 4, 2014

Personal Tech Q&A on reverting to previous version of Microsoft Word document; exporting Gmail contacts list; Tip of the Week on managing email more efficiently in Apple's iOS 8 software for iPhone. MORE

Dec. 3, 2014

Letter from Robin Herman, former reporter at The New York Times, comments on Dec 2 article about removal of two Princeton eating club officers over emails ridiculing women. MORE

Dec. 2, 2014

Adam Krop and Andrew Hoffenberg are removed as officers of a Princeton University eating club know as Tiger Inn after they sent emails that ridiculed women and contained a sexually explicit photograph; both police and university are investigating; survey of membership that led to dismissal of the pair comes as treatment of female students gains urgency on campuses around country. MORE

Dec. 1, 2014

Apple is set to go to trial in third major antitrust lawsuit it has faced since Steve Jobs died; Jobs's emails have been used in previous two cases and will play important role in upcoming case, and have made him exceptional witness against his own company. MORE

Nov. 6, 2014

Hackers took 53 million email addresses in addition to the payment card details of 56 million of its customers during this year’s data breach, the retailer disclosed. MORE

Sep. 6, 2014

Internal Revenue Service says that it has lost emails from five more workers who are part of congressional investigations into the treatment of conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. MORE

Aug. 29, 2014

Op-Ed article by author Clive Thompson calls on American companies to adopt Daimler's policy of limiting email sent to workers while they are on vacation; contends limiting email during off hours is humane, fair and efficient. MORE

Aug. 23, 2014

Editorial commends Daimler's optional email blackout program for its workers, which automatically deletes incoming emails to employees when they are on vacation; notes it is part of 'data detox' trend developing in Europe. MORE

Aug. 7, 2014

Personal Tech Q&A on disabling spell-check in Gmail, scanning large volumes of photos and Tip of the Week on using new Save feature on Facebook. MORE

Jul. 31, 2014

Lois Lerner, former Internal Revenue Service official at center of the agency's Tea Party controversy, referred to some conservative Republicans using derogatory language in newly released emails; Republican Rep Dave Camp, who released documents, says remarks show that Lerner is biased against conservative groups and singled them out for extra scrutiny. MORE

Jul. 24, 2014

Editorial opposes Bureau of Prisons policy that allows government to monitor and read email messages to and from inmates, particularly messages between inmates and their lawyers; holds that policy violates attorney-client privilege; calls for Justice Department to change policy, or, barring that, for individual judges to oppose it. MORE

Jul. 23, 2014

Federal prosecutors across the country have begun reading emails sent from prisoners to their lawyers, potentially using inmates' own words against them; practice has been wholly embraced in Brooklyn, where prosecutors have said they intend to read such emails in almost every case; issue has spurred court battles over whether inmates have a right to confidential email communications with their lawyers. MORE

Jul. 17, 2014

Justice Department, which has been investigating Internal Revenue Service's scrutiny of conservative groups, says it is looking into disappearance of thousands of emails belonging to Lois Lerner, former IRS official at center of investigation. MORE

Jul. 17, 2014

Jul. 2, 2014

Antispam law in Canada requiring proof that recipient has consented to be sent emails results in torrent of messages from retailers, manufacturers, nonprofits and government agencies to everyone on their mailing lists; companies are rushing to comply and verify that people want their accounts flooded with deals, discounts and announcements MORE

Jun. 30, 2014

David Carr The Media Equation column explores surprising endurance of e-mail newsletters, artifact of the early internet that has experienced surge in popularity; notes that major media companies and smaller entities alike have found newsletters to be a reliable source of reader traffic and attention; argues that form is successful because it presents a concise unit of information amid the Internet's chaotic, endless stream. MORE

Jun. 11, 2014

Microsoft, in groundbreaking challenge of federal prosecutorial authority, objects to order to hand over customer's email stored at Irish data center; holds that turning over email stored abroad 'would violate international law and treaties, and reduce the privacy protection of everyone on the planet.' MORE

Jun. 5, 2014

Personal Tech Q&A column on transferring photos from a cellphone to a Kindle Fire; blocking email in Gmail; Tip of the Week on using screen-reader software built into some operating systems to catch grammatical mistakes. MORE

May. 20, 2014

Richard Scudamore, chief executive of England’s Premier League, escapes dismissal after a panel controlled by Britain’s top 20 professional soccer clubs rules that no further discipline is necessary in respect to emails he exchanged with others that were laced with coarse sexual innuendo about women; Scudamore has apologized and pledged that these actions would not be repeated. MORE

Apr. 15, 2014

Google updates its terms of service, informing users that their emails are automatically analyzed by software to create targeted ads; unpopular practice has been at heart of litigation. MORE

Apr. 10, 2014

Personal Tech Q&A column; some versions of Microsoft Surface tablets are able to run iTunes; problems with the iPhone's screen rotation function have multiple solutions; Tip of the Week on organizing Microsoft Outlook.com inbox. MORE

Apr. 9, 2014

European Court of Justice strikes down European Union law, adopted in response to deadly terrorist attacks, that requires telecommunications companies to retain information about calls and emails for up to two years. MORE

Mar. 23, 2014

Op-Ed article by author Maria Konnikova notes that many public figures employed the practice of writing angry letters but refraining from sending them, which serves as both emotional and strategic catharsis; contrasts the stark difference between an unsent angry letter and the modern equivalent of an angry email or text or tweet. MORE

Mar. 21, 2014

Microsoft's suit accusing a former employee of stealing company secrets reveals power that it and other major technology companies have to snoop on their customers' private data; company read the emails and instant messages of a blogger who was in contact with the employee in order to gather evidence, actions that were fully legal; Microsoft has pledged to take steps toward transparency. MORE

Mar. 12, 2014

Documents leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward J Snowden add new details to the emerging public understanding of a secret body of law developed by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court; documents show how the court evolved from its original task of approving wiretap requests to justifying activities like the bulk collection of data about Americans' emails and phone calls. MORE

Feb. 17, 2014

German Chancellor Angela Merkel publicly embraces proposals to create European data networks that would keep emails and other communications on the European side of the Atlantic and away from prying American eyes; Merkel says she will discuss matter with French Pres Francois Hollande. MORE

Jan. 30, 2014

Personal Tech Q&A on options for printing photos from smartphones and source of contact details in Gmail, and Tip of the Week notes third-party software for parental controls. MORE

Jan. 19, 2014

For those who can’t seem to handle the onslaught of email, there is always the extreme option: select all, hit delete and declare email bankruptcy. MORE

Jan. 5, 2014

Nigerian scams, spam emails sent from Nigerian fraudsters requesting advance money in exchange for future payout, is latest in series of swindles that first began in Britain in the 19th century and then spread to Nigeria after it was established as a British colony in 1914. MORE

Jan. 5, 2014

Many people who work at home may go days without speaking a word aloud, conducting all professional and personal interactions by email, text or social media; trend appears to be part of continuing decline of telephone culture. MORE

Dec. 26, 2013

Gail Collins Op-Ed column offers an ode to spam email, which is particularly creative and abundant around the holidays. MORE

Dec. 12, 2013

Personal Tech Q&A on saving novel that is being written using either Gmail or Google Drive, and ways to use an external display with an Apple laptop; Tip of the Week on mobile apps for television program schedules. MORE

Nov. 24, 2013

David Segal The Haggler column tries to find out why companies would pay to blanket reporters with hundreds of thousands of public relations spam email they did not ask for and almost surely do not want. MORE

Nov. 14, 2013

Personal Tech Q&A on turning off Windows 8 multitouch gestures and turning off unused mailboxes in iOS 7’s mail app; Tip of the Week notes Google brought back Pegman, little yellow fellow used to find available Street View photography on a Google map. MORE

Oct. 31, 2013

Personal Tech Q&A on getting better performance from Gmail, how to quit apps in iOS 7, and Tip of the Week on Shut Down box in recent versions of Windows and Mac OS X. MORE

Oct. 24, 2013

Personal Tech Q&A on sorting out first names on Yahoo's new e-mail format, how to turn off iPhone tracking, and Tip of the Week on Google's new experimental features. MORE

Oct. 20, 2013

Abby Ellin Cultural Studies column notes that it is hard to unsubscribe from unwanted promotional e-mails that are coming from an acquaintance without offending them. MORE

Oct. 16, 2013

An upgrade to Yahoo Mail has longtime users summoning their online pitchforks. MORE

Magazine Desk

I have been invited by a master for an education in spamming, the practice of blasting millions of unsolicited e-mail messages into the Internet in order to advertise everything from loans with easy terms to women of easy virtue.